County to vote on $7 million Baldwin Road widening project

Published: Monday, November 4, 2013 at 08:57 AM.

LYNN HAVEN — A mile-long stretch of Baldwin Road is about to get a little wider.

The Bay County Commission is scheduled to vote on a $7 million project at its meeting Tuesday that would expand a section of the road from two lanes to four.

The project — part of which falls in Lynn Haven — would widen the road from Harrison Avenue to Minnesota Avenue. But Lynn Haven will not contribute to the project’s cost, if it’s approved. The county and the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) would split the cost 50-50.

County Commissioner Mike Nelson said it would be nice if Lynn Haven would step up and foot some of the bill.

“I would like to see the city contribute where the (road falls in the) city limits,” he said. “I think that would be a big help to, of course, the citizens of Bay County, but we’re going to do it either way. But we would certainly love to have them (be) a part of it.”

The county hasn’t contacted Lynn Haven to contribute to the project in at least five years, though, and the city doesn’t seem interested.

“No. 1, no one has discussed it with us, and No. 2 we just don’t have the money in the budget to do that right now,” said Lynn Haven Mayor Walter Kelley.

LYNN HAVEN — A mile-long stretch of Baldwin Road is about to get a little wider.

The Bay County Commission is scheduled to vote on a $7 million project at its meeting Tuesday that would expand a section of the road from two lanes to four.

The project — part of which falls in Lynn Haven — would widen the road from Harrison Avenue to Minnesota Avenue. But Lynn Haven will not contribute to the project’s cost, if it’s approved. The county and the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) would split the cost 50-50.

County Commissioner Mike Nelson said it would be nice if Lynn Haven would step up and foot some of the bill.

“I would like to see the city contribute where the (road falls in the) city limits,” he said. “I think that would be a big help to, of course, the citizens of Bay County, but we’re going to do it either way. But we would certainly love to have them (be) a part of it.”

The county hasn’t contacted Lynn Haven to contribute to the project in at least five years, though, and the city doesn’t seem interested.

“No. 1, no one has discussed it with us, and No. 2 we just don’t have the money in the budget to do that right now,” said Lynn Haven Mayor Walter Kelley.

The city is being very conservative on its spending right now and only a small portion of that stretch of road falls in the city limits, Kelley said. Still the mayor didn’t totally rule out the idea of helping out.

“If someone brings it to the city, then, you know, we’ll sit down and we’ll talk about it,” Kelley said.

The project is the third phase of a larger effort to widen Baldwin Road. The two earlier phases widened it from State 390 to Harrison Avenue and were completed by 2008 and cost the county $2 million, said Ken Schnell, county public works director. Panama City didn’t contribute either, even though some of the road fell in the city limits.

Meanwhile, the County Commission’s vote Tuesday would cement an agreement between the state and FDOT and get the ball rolling on the project.

The county would be responsible for bidding the project and would do that in November, according to documents detailing the agreement. The bid would be awarded in March, followed by the design and permitting phase, and construction would start in October. The expected finish date would be Dec. 2015. Schnell said the goal is to stick to the schedule.

In addition to widening Baldwin Road to four lanes, the current project would include turn lanes, a sidewalk on one side, bicycle lanes on both sides, traffic signage and roadway striping. A curb and gutter and stormwater facilities would also be added.
Though the county would contribute $3.5 million, most of that would come through a land donation, not cash. The county would only pay about $673,000 in cash for phase three, Schnell said.

“We’re getting the property value of that right of way that’s required for that extension use,” he said.

Schnell said the widening will enhance Baldwin Road as a major east-west connector road.

“It basically functions the same thing as 23rd Street just further north,” he said.

Nelson also praised the project’s value and was optimistic the board would favor it, and said he would vote for it.

The project is funded through the state’s Transportation Regional Incentive Program (TRIP), said Ian Satter, FDOT spokesman. It will provide better connectivity between State 390, State 77 and U.S. 231, he said.

“Basically what we do is we hand the money to the county or the city, whoever’s doing the project, and then they administer the funds and then they take care of it,” he said.

The County Commission is scheduled to meet at 9 a.m. Tuesday at the Bay County Government Center on 840 W. 11th St. in Panama City. The meeting is open to the public.

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